Provision of best healthcare facilities govt's priority

LAHORE: Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmeen Rashid Tuesday said the provision of best healthcare facilities to the masses was the priority of the PTI government.

Addressing a seminar in connection with International Health Day here at the Institute of Public Health, she said the basic purpose to celebrate World Health Day was to ensure justice by providing best healthcare facilities to the patients in public sector hospital.

The minister said the Punjab government, in its short tenure, had recruited 10,000 doctors and paramedical staff in health sector.

In the next phase 15,000 vacant posts would be filled purely on merit, she added.

She said the PTI government after coming into power on the first hand overcome the deficiency of doctors and paramedical staff in public sector hospital.

She said the government was providing Sehat Insaf Cards to 300 million people of 7.2 million families who were living their lives below the poverty line.

Now, people of the rural area were able to get free of cost treatment facilities in public as well as private sector hospitals.

She said the present government was spending the tax money on people's welfare, and it had allocated major share of the budget for rehabilitating health sector.

She said that providing best healthcare facilities to the people was the basic responsibility of the state.

She declared that issuance of Sehat Insaf Card to disable people was a remarkable initiative. She said that number of beds were being increased in public sector hospitals for facilitating the patients.

"Under the Prime Minister Health Initiatives rehabilitation work of the hospitals in 8 major districts of the province is being speedily carried out," she added.

She said that Mother Childcare Hospitals were being established in 5 major districts of the province.